A familiar football coach is getting back in the game at Sevastopol High School.

Ron Frank is returning for his third stint with the Pioneers after the school board approved his hiring as head coach Thursday night. He replaces Justin Skiba, who resigned in spring following three seasons as head coach and seven overall.

“Football is in my blood,” said Frank. “I’ve been at Sevastopol since 1990, and there haven’t been too many years that I haven’t coached football. When this opening came up, I thought the third time might be the charm.”

Frank was head coach of the combined Sevastopol/Gibraltar team for eight seasons (1991 to 1998). He then stepped down before returning for another eight-year stint (2005 to 2012) after Sevastopol and Gibraltar split into separate teams.

Frank led the Pioneers to their only playoff appearance in 2010. Their 6-4 record that year also tied the school record at the time for most wins in a season.

Frank resigned after the 2012 season to cope with the death of his father.

“My father passed away about a month before the 2012 season, and I just went through the motions that year,” recalled Frank. “After that I needed some time with my family. It’s been four years now and I’m ready to get back in it. I’m very excited and ready to get rolling.”

Since Frank’s last stint, Sevastopol has switched to eight-man football. The Pioneers broke from the traditional game in 2013 due to declining participation and will begin their fourth season next month as one of 24 eight-man teams in the state.

Frank said he helped Skiba and Sevastopol transition to eight-man football.

“We did a lot of research on eight-man football together and watched some games together,” said Frank. “There are some different rules, but it’s still football. It’s still blocking and tackling.”

Three assistant coaches are staying on board with the Pioneers, including Mike Laaksonen, Jason Stenzel and Joel Schauske. Former assistant coach Scott Walker is also returning, said Frank.

“What’s nice is I’ll be able to lean on the assistant coaches who’ve been around the eight-man game,” said Frank. “We’ve got a good staff. We won’t be doing anything much different (than when Skiba was coaching). We’ll keep the same offense and tweak the defense a little.”

The Pioneers finished 7-3 last season and qualified for the Jamboree, a showcase for the top eight-man teams in the state. Frank said the team lost only four players to graduation, but they’ll have to replace two-way standouts Quin Schram and Dylan Iverson.

“We’re going to have a young team, but talented,” said Frank. “A lot of players who are sophomores and juniors now made huge contributions last season. My goal is to get 30 kids out, learn the game, have fun and keep the momentum rolling.”

Sevastopol opens the season Aug. 19 at home against Menominee Indian.

Door County Advocate sports editor Korey Mallien can be reached at (920) 743-3321 or by email at sports@doorcountyadvocate.com. Follow him on Twitter @DCAsports.